The present invention relates to a connector assembly, particularly to a connector assembly having a fitting detection mechanism for electrically detecting the fitting state of a pair of connectors.
Such a fitting detection mechanism has, for example, a fitting detection circuit composed of two detection terminals and a short-circuit member. When a pair of connectors are fitted with each other, the two detection terminals are short-circuited with the short-circuit member so that the fitting detection circuit is closed, thereby detecting the fitting state.
A connector assembly equipped with this type of fitting detection mechanism is disclosed by JP 2014-056718 A in which two detection terminals 1 are disposed at one connector in parallel to each other along an fitting direction D and a short-circuit member 2 having two contact portions 2A is disposed at the other connector, as shown in FIG. 24.
When the connectors are fitted with each other along the fitting direction D, ends of the two detection terminals 1 are brought into contact with the two contact portions 2A of the short-circuit member 2 and then, the detection terminals 1 are further moved relatively in the fitting direction D as rubbing and wiping the corresponding contact portions 2A. Once the fitting of the connectors is established, the fitting state of the connectors is locked by a lock mechanism which is not shown.
JP 2014-011119 A discloses a connector assembly in which a detection terminal 4 extending along a fitting direction D is disposed at a first connector 3 and a main body terminal 7 is disposed at a connector housing 6 of a second connector 5, as shown in FIG. 25. In FIG. 25 showing a cross-section of the connector assembly, one detection terminal 4 and one main body terminal 7 are only shown in the figure but two detection terminals 4 are disposed at the first connector 3 in parallel to each other and two main body terminals 7 corresponding thereto are disposed at the second connector 5.
The rear ends of the two main body terminals 7 extending in the opposite direction from the first connector 3 are movable free ends at each of which a contact portion 7B is formed through a curved spring portion 7A. In addition, a short-circuit member 8 for short-circuiting the contact portions 7B of the two main body terminals 7 is fixed at the connector housing 6 of the second connector 5 and when the second connector 5 is not fitted with the first connector 3, the contact portions 7B of the two main body terminals 7 are in contact with the short-circuit member 8 and thus short-circuited.
When a manipulation lever 9 attached to the second connector 5 is rotated to start the fitting between the first connector 3 and the second connector 5, the detection terminals 4 are, as wiping, brought into contact with the corresponding main body terminals 7 and at the same time, a movable arm 10 formed in the connector housing 6 of the second connector 5 is pushed down by the manipulation lever 9 to displace the spring portions 7A of the main body terminals 7 downward, whereby the contact portions 7B of the two main body terminals 7 are separated from the short-circuit member 8 as shown in FIG. 25.
Once the fitting between the first connector 3 and the second connector 5 is established, a projection 9A of the manipulation lever 9 is caught on a projection 6A of the connector housing 6 so that the manipulation lever 9 is restrained from rotating, whereby the fitting state of the first connector 3 and the second connector 5 is locked. Simultaneously, the spring portions 7A of the main body terminals 7 having been pushed down by the manipulation lever 9 are restored to the position before fitting so that the contact portions 7B of the two main body terminals 7 are brought into contact with the short-circuit member 8 and thus short-circuited, thereby closing a fitting detection circuit.
However, the connector assembly disclosed by JP 2014-056718 A has a problem in that the two detection terminals 1 are brought into contact with the two contact portions 2A of the short-circuit member 2 to close the fitting detection circuit before the fitting of the connectors is established and therefore, the connector assembly is unable to accurately detect the fact that the fitting state of the connectors has been locked.
In the connector assembly disclosed by JP 2014-011119 A, since the spring portions 7A of the main body terminals 7 having been pushed down by the manipulation lever 9 are restored to the position before fitting whereby surfaces of the contact portions 7B of the main body terminals 7 and a surface of the short-circuit member 8 facing thereto are brought into contact with each other, the distance by which the contact portions 7B of the main body terminals 7 and the short-circuit member 8 rub each other is short and therefore, the wiping has only a small effect.
Furthermore, the fitting detection circuit has the configuration in which four contact points, that is, two contact points established between the two detection terminals 4 and the two main body terminals 7 and two contact points established between the contact portions 7B of the two main body terminals 7 and the short-circuit member 8, are all arranged in series.
Therefore, the fitting detection circuit has poor reliability as a detection circuit.